Illinois History lecture series planned
Carrier Mills high school instructor and noted local historian Mark Motsinger has organized a weekly lecture series on some of the lesser known subjects in the history of Southern Illinois.
This series, Southern Illinois Unearthed, will be presented at the Steam Cafe, located at 10 South Cherry Street in Harrisburg, 6:30 p.m. on Thursdays.
"I've done some lectures like this before, in Carbondale, Fort Wayne, Ind., and Giant City," Motsinger said. "They are always fun for the audience and it helps promote the area. We have a very rich heritage here. I thought the lecture series would be a neat thing to do."
Motsinger added that he often gets questions from area residents about some of the more mysterious, little-known or curious elements of our local history and he thought that this would be a good way to share the facts of our unique heritage with the public. Different guest lecturers will present the lectures and the events will all start at 6:30 p.m. at the Steam Cafe. The lecture series is being sponsored by the Saline County Tourism Board.
The dates,topics and speaker of the lectures are:
March 19 - "Suitable Only for Tree Crops: The Story of the Shawnee National Forest" by Shawnee National Forest Heritage Program Manager Mary McCorvie.
March 26 - "Trigg's Trails Tours and Detours" by Charles Hammond, researcher, photographer and collector.
April 2 - "Archeology of the John Hart Crenshaw House (Old Slave House)" by Southern Illinois University Center for Archeological Investigations Dr. Mark Wagner.
April 16 - "Recent Investigations at Kincaid Mounds (2003-2013)" by Southern Illinois University Center for Archeological Investigations Director/Retired Dr. Brian Butler
April 23 - "A Peculiar Method: Bedrock Mortar Holes / Indian Kettles" by Shawnee National Forest District Archaeologist Heather Carey.
April 30 - "Rock Art of Illinois" by Southern Illinois University Center for Archeological Investigations Dr. Mark Wagner.
May 7 - "Illinois in the War of 1812" by Gillum Ferguson, retired federal prosecutor and author of 20120 Illinois Historical Society Book of the Year, "Illinois in the War of 1812."
May 14 - "The Mysterious Stone Fortifications of Southern Illinois" by history teacher, 2014 Illinois Historical Society Teacher of the Year and avocational researcher Mark Motsinger.